In the Kitchen

One of the very first insects that I identified as a young gardener was the pine sawfly.

We had planted over a hundred white pine seedlings over 30 years ago and after a decade or so we started to lose a couple each year to one problem or another.

Daddy charged me with inspection duty. Looking for and plucking bagworms; collecting beetles in jars for identification at the County Extension Service; or closely noting the color, legs and chewing habits of the various caterpillars I encountered.

Sometime’s it’s just too darn hot to be in front of the stove. Am I wrong?

On those hot summer nights when you can’t stand the thought of turning on the oven or standing in front of a hot grill, it’s important to have an arsenal of recipes so that you don’t resort to starving or ordering takeout.

Kids today have a lot on their plates — getting good grades, playing in sports and music, making new friends. A nutritious breakfast gets them started for the day, and the right midday meal and snack keeps them going strong. You also want to keep them from becoming “day traders” or tossing out what you’ve carefully packed in their lunches.

In one of my last posts I shared some strategies for you to use when you’re trying hard to stay on track with a healthy eating plan when the family BBQ invite comes along. Today, we’re going to look at the flip side of that by talking about what sorts of finger foods you might consider serving at your next party to please everyone in the crowd from the Celiacs and Paleoistas to good old Uncle Jim, who thinks that everyone who eats organic is a hippy!

The following finger foods are all paleo, gluten free and absolutely scrumptious!

I shared some tips with you a couple weeks ago about grilling meats but there’s more to summer barbecue season than burgers and steaks!

Why turn on the stove to cook your veggies when you have a perfectly good hot grill already prepped? Never mind the fact that grilled veggies and fruits taste like something out of Heaven — if you know how to cook them properly!

It’s barbecue season! And while all of us love the thrill of the grill, it’s a known fact that cooking meat over charcoal can be harmful for our health because of the carcinogens that come from cooking over chemically charged lava rocks and from eating charred meat.

Rather than giving up the grill on those hot summer nights, here are a few ways to make your next barbecue a little healthier.

When you start making your own stock, you’re going to have a hard time buying it from the store ever again.

Making stock from scratch is about as satisfying as it gets. Being the one who purchased (or even better, grew!) the vegetables that you’re using to nourish your family means that you know exactly what’s in that pot. Like with anything that comes out of a package, with store-bought stock you can’t really be sure of the quality of the ingredients that were used.